Aeroionizer

ABSTRACT

An aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electric supply mains, operates with a high voltage produced by a voltage multiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode. The set of ionization electrodes consists of a metal strip such that the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end is in the saw tooth formation. The set of ionization electrodes is fixed to the outside of the inner of two rings fixed concentrically to an electrically insulating disc, the deflecting electrode being mounted on the outside of the outer ring, and the insulating disc and the electrodes are surrounded with a housing made of insulating material in the roof of which there is an opening into which is inserted a disc made of insulating material. The housing and disc are made antistatic. The opening in the roof of the housing is cut with an edge sloping towards the center of the housing while the rim of the disc is cut with an edge sloping in the opposite direction to the edge of the housing roof so that a gap is formed between the two edges, the set of ionization electrodes being arranged in this gap.

United States Patent [1 1 Svab [ Feb. 20, 1973 [54] AEROIONIZER [75] Inventor: Ferenc Svab, Budapest, Hungary [73] Assignee: Medicor Munek, Budapest, Hungary [22] Filed: Oct. 28, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 84,559

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 21,794 3/1893 Great Britain ..204/322 9,631 7/1892 Great Britain 531,667 9/1954 Belgium ..317/4 Primary Examiner-Richard A. Gaudet Assistant ExaminerG. F. Dunne Attorney-Arthur O. Klein [57] ABSTRACT An aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electric supply mains, operates.with a high voltage produced by a voltage multiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode. The set of ionization electrodes consists of a metal strip such that the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end is in the saw tooth formation. The set of ionization electrodes is fixed to the outside of the inner of two rings fixed concentrically to an electrically insulating disc, the deflecting electrode being mounted on the outside of the outer ring, and the insulating disc and the electrodes are surrounded with a housing made of insulating material in the roof of which there is an opening into which is inserted a disc made of insulating material. The housing and disc are made antistatic. The opening in the roof of the housing is cut with an edge sloping towards the center of the housing while the rim of the disc is cut with an edge sloping in the opposite direction to the edge of the housing roof so that a gap is fomied between the two edges, the set of ionization electrodes being arranged in this gap.

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ATTORNEY AEROIONIZER The invention relates to an aeroionizer which can be run with a battery or by electric supply mains, operates with a high voltage producedby a voltage multiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode.

As is known, some of the air molecules both in the outside atmosphere and in enclosed spaces are electrically charged due to various physical causes. The biological action of these air particles with an electrical charge, called a'eroions, has attracted attention for some time and experiments have been carried out to investigate the physical and biological effect of the aeroions.

By means of climatological and biometeorological investigations it was established that the preponderance of positive aeroions in the air had a detrimental effect on most people, causing nervousness and a reduction in the capacity to concentrate, often aggravated by bad headaches. According to statistical data the danger of an accident, e.g., with a vehicle, is increased by these phenomena, particularly when a driver drives for several hours without a break.

The biometeorological investigations show that the functioning of the organism is favorably influenced even when breathing air with only a relatively low negative ion concentration. A characteristic symptom of this is that the breathing rhythm is slower while at the same time the depth of breath increases so that a larger volume of air enters the lungs. The oxygen is utilized better by the organism since the slowing of the breathing rate allows more time for oxygen to penetrate the walls of the alveoli. Through the blood circulation the negatively charged aeroions have a favorable influence on the central nervous system. As a result, the blood pressure becomes normal, the tendency to tiredness is reduced, and the capacity to concentrate increases. The overall calming effect produces a pleasant general feeling of well-being.

There are already known ionizers for producing aeroions of negative polarity which operate on the corona'discharge principle with a wire of very small diameter. In these known devices the ionization electrodes consist of tips simply made of wire, or, in apparatus of larger dimensions, wire of very small diameter stretched on a frame. The manufacture of these electrodes is complicated because the tips have to be fixed to a special support by soldering or point welding.

A further disadvantage of these devices is that, due to the small diameter of 0.03 to 0.04 mm, both the dismantling and the fixing or mounting have to be carried out under a magnifying glass. To achieve the necessary mechanical strength, the tips have to be made out of hard-drawn material, e.g., bronze. However, these can only be fixed by welding. Despite all precautions, the tips are easily damaged and bend, which considerably reduces the efficiency of the apparatus.

In the case of the ionizers for use in vehicles there is a further problem. The position of the tips must be set accurately in relation to the exhaust outlet; this cannot be achieved on an industrial scale when point welding a piece of wire of a few hundredths of a millimeter diameter. The known aeroionizers used for therapeutic purposes are suitable only for producing aeroions of 2 negative polarity, and again the ionization tips are manufactured from wire of small diameter. They have the additional disadvantage that they have been produced only in table models and therefore can only be used when a patient is sitting up; they are not suitable for treating bed-ridden patients.

In cases in which it is necessary to breathe positive aeroions, these devices can be used after electrical inversion. For biological tests they are of no use at all since there aeroions of both polarities are required from the start.

The object of the invention is to eliminate or reduce the above-mentioned defects and disadvantages.

A further object of the invention is to produce an aeroionizer suitable for use equally in vehicles to prevent the formation of an unsatisfactory ion climate, and which is also suitable for therapeutic treatment and for biological tests.

The present invention consists in an aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electrical mains, operates with a high voltage produced by a voltage multiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode, wherein the set of ionization electrodes consists of a metal strip such that the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end is in a saw tooth formation.

The thickness of the metal strip may be 0.04 to 0.05 mm, the ratio between the height of the saw teeth and the height of the continuous strip beneath the teeth is about 3:1, preferably 3: l and the aperture angle of the teeth in the tooth base may be at most 20.

The aeroionizer of the present invention may be provided in a form which is suitable for use in vehicles to prevent the formation of an unsatisfactory ion climate. In an illustrative embodiment the set of electrodes is fixed to the outside surface of the inner ring of a pair of I concentric rings fixed to a disc made of synthetic electrically insulating material, a deflecting electrode being attached to the outside of the outer ring. The synthetic discs together with the electrodes are surrounded by a housing of synthetic electrically insulating material, in the roof of which there is an aperture, and in this aperture there is inserted a disc made of synthetic electrically insulating material. The housing and disc are made antistatic, the aperture cut in the roof of the housing is cut in an edge inclined towards the central point of the housing, while the rim of the disc is cut in an edge lying the opposite way to the edge of the housing roof, a gap thus being formed between the two edges, and the set of electrodes is arranged in this gap.

The aeroionizer of the present invention may also may also be provided in a form which is especially suitable for use in therapeutic treatment or for biological'tests. An aeroionizer adapted for such use may include an ionizer head, a voltage multiplier attached thereto and mounted in a housing of synthetic material, and a network component connected thereto. The ionizer head is a square head made of synthetic electrically insulating material which is clad on the-inside with metal foil forming the deflecting electrode in such a way that the metal foil is rounded off at the corners and the radius of the opposite curvatures is greater than a quarter of the distance of separation between them. The sets of ionization electrodes are arranged in the head parallel to one another, and the head is closed on the outside over the sets of electrodes by a grating of synthetic material, which is made antistatic; the grating consists of slits formed by edges inclined away from one another and narrowing towards the electrode over each electrode.

The greatest advantage of the aeroionizer in accordance with the invention is that its design is very simple as the ionization electrodes can be cut from the metal strip simply by stamping. At the same time, the continuous lower part of the metal strip insures a much greater mechanical strength than the known electrodes made from wires or needles. As a result, the reliability of the device is also much greater as the probability of shifting of the electrode tips formed by the strip is minimal. Another advantage is that the continuous lower part of the metal strip functions as a supplementary electrode, as a result of which the electrostatic field set up between the ionization electrode and the deflecting electrode is of such a form that the aeroion loss in the outlet is reduced. In this way the output of the device is about 5.10 ion/m /sec., which is much greater than that of similar devices.

The so-called miniature aeroionizer used in vehicles has the further advantage that, of all the devices for this purpose so far known, it has the smallest dimensions and at the same time the greatest efficiency.

Another advantage of the apparatus suitable for therapeutic purposes is that it can be mounted on the wall or on a frame and therefore can also be used for treating bed-ridden patients. It takes up little space, and, in the case of patients in a ward, the frame can be positioned next to the bed. Since it is extremely simple to change the polarity of the electrodes, this apparatus can also be used for carrying out biological tests.

The invention will be described in more detail below with reference to two embodiments. In the-attached drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in longitudinal axial section through a miniature ionizer in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged developed view of the set of ionization electrodes made from a metal strip;

FIG. 3 is an exploded diagrammatic view of the longitudinal section of the therapeutic aeroionizer, certain of the parts being shown in elevation and others in axial longitudinal section;

FIG. 4 is a view in transverse section along line IV- IV in FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a view in horizontal section taken along line V-V of FIG. 4.

FIG. 1 shows a miniature aeroionizer for use in vehicles. In this embodiment two concentric rings are rigidly attached to one side of a disc 1 of synthetic electrically insulating material. The inner ring 3 is of less axial length than the outer ring 2. The rings 2 and 3 and the disc 1 can be made in one piece, e.g., by an injection molding process. The thickness of the walls of the disc 1 and the rings 2 and 3 is about 2 mm. A metal strip 4 is fixed to the outside of the inner ring 3, this being done by cutting a notch in the ring 3 and inserting the ends of the metal strip 4 bent round the ring 3 into this slit. The metal strip 4 is 0.04 to 0.05 mm in thickness and its upper, free-standing end is saw-tooth in formation (see FIG. 2). In a preferred embodiment the ratio between the height c of the saw teeth and the height a of the continuous strip beneath the teeth is 3: l

the height c and the height a together giving the width d of the metal strip 4. At the base of the tooth b the angle a is at maximum 20. The saw teeth of the metal strip 4 form the ionization electrodes.

A smooth metal foil 5 is glued to the outside of the outer ring 2, or electrically conducting paint is applied to such ring. This metal foil or layer of paint 5 forms the deflecting electrode.

The disc 1 and the ionization electrode 4 together with the deflecting electrode 5 are arranged in a housing made of synthetic electrically insulating material. In the roof of the housing there is cut a circular hole 6, this being done in such away that the hole has an edge 8 inclined towards the center of the housing. A disc 9 made of synthetic electrically insulating material is fixed in this opening concentrically with the disc I, e.g., by means of a screw 11. The rim of the disc 9 is cut in an edge 10 which slopes in the direction opposite to the edge 8, the edge 10 lying in the same transverse plane as the edge 8, and the disc 9 is inserted in such a way that the two edges 10 and 8 lie exactly opposite one another and leave a gap free between them. The saw teeth of the metal strip 4 forming the ionization electrode have to be arranged exactly under this gap 12, and exactly in the middle of the gap. The tips of the ionization electrode lie at the same height as the edges 10 and 8.

The inside surface of the disc 9 has to be made antistatic in some known way otherwise it would hinder the escape of the aeroions. One way of doing this, if the housing 6 is made of statically charge synthetic material, is to attach a further deflecting electrode 15 to the inside wall of the housing roof, either by gluing a metal foil or by applying an electrically conducting layer. This deflecting electrode 15 has to be electrically connected to the deflecting electrode 5.

On the side of the disc 1 away from the electrodes there are mounted a transverter and a voltage multiplier (neither of which is shown) together with a lamp indicating when the apparatus is in operation. The supply voltage line 14 is fixed to the transverter panel. This panel can be connected to a low voltage source of 6 to 12 volt. These electronic components are surrounded by a synthetic electrically insulating cover 13. In the cover 13 is a screw-threaded hole into which can be screwed an adhesive plate with a pivoting bearing by means of which the apparatus can be fixed to any flat surface, in particular to the glass window of vehicles.

The miniature ionizer of FIGS. 1 and 2 operates as follows:

The current supply line 14 is connected to the corresponding source of current, e.g., the battery of the car, and then the transverter begins to operate. The pulsed or alternating voltage of sound frequency produced by the transverter is increased by the multiplier to the direct voltage of several thousand volts (about 3 to 4 kV) necessary for ionization. The corona discharge resulting at the ionization electrodes ionizes the air due to the effect of this several thousand volt negative voltage. Of the aeroion pairs .formed in the sharply inhomogeneous electrical field created at the plate tips, the positive ions are neutralized while the negative ions escape at high velocity. The deflecting electrode 5 insures that the aeroions of negative charge resulting at the plate tips do not diverge but only flow out through the gap 12.

The continuous part of the metal strip 4 below the saw teeth acts as a supplementary electrode and together with the deflecting electrode 5 forms an electrostatic field of such a form that the aeroions resulting at the ionizer tips escape parallel through the gap 12; at the same time the aeroion loss in this gap is reduced.

Another embodiment of the aeroionizer in accordance with the invention, which is especially suitable for therapeutic treatment, is depicted in FIGS. 3, 4, and 5. This apparatus consists of three parts: an ionizer head, a voltage multiplier housing 22 and a network component 23. The ionizer head has a housing 21 made of synthetic electrically insulating material and having a rectangular cross-section. At the front this head is closed by a grating 24 made of synthetic electrically insulating material, from the rear by a contact 25. Between the two there is metal foil 26 bent round the inside wall of the housing 21 of the head to fulfill the function of a deflecting electrode. The metal foil 26 is curved at the corners in such a way that the radius 34 is greater than a quarter of the distance of the separation between successive oppositely curved radii at the corners of the foil 26. If the deflecting electrode is formed by an electrically conducting layer of paint applied to the inside of the side walls of the head, then the curve must be produced in some way.

The ionization electrodes 27 are fixed in several parallel rows to the inside wall of the grating 24, which has a support 28, likewise made of synthetic electrically insulating material, affixed thereto. The ionization electrodes 27 are made of metal strips entirely similar to those in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2. In a preferred embodiment the ratio between the height c of the saw teeth and the height a of the continuous strip is again 3:1, at the tooth base b the angle a is likewise at maximum The only difference is that the part of the metal strip with saw teeth and the continuous part are bent in such a way that they are at right angles to one another, as can be seen in FIG. 5.

The grating 24 has to be made antistatic in some suitable manner. This can be done in the same embodiment as in FIGS. 1 and 2. In the grating 24 there are slits 35 with a slope such that they narrow or converge towards the electrodes. The high voltage is fed to the ionizing electrodes through a branch wire 29 and a contact 30. Attached to the contact there is a protective resistor 31 which serves as protection against electric shocks.

The voltage multiplier and the lamp which indicates when the apparatus is in operation are mounted in the voltage multiplier housing 22. On the side of this housing there is a clamping loop 32 by means of which the apparatus can be fixed to any frame.

In the network unit 23 there is a network connection. The apparatus can be connected by the line 33 to the mains. To the outside of the network unit 23 there may be affixed a lamp which indicates the polarity of the current supplied to the electrodes.

The therapeutic aeroionizer of FIGS. 3, 4, and 5 operates as follows:

The plug of the line 33 is plugged in so that the apparatus is switched on. By means of the voltage multiplier, the mains voltage is rectified and the voltage of several thousand volts (about 3 to 4 kV) required for ionization is produced. Otherwise the apparatus operates exactly like the miniature ionizer shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

This apparatus is equally suitable for producing negative and positive aeroions. The polarity change is easily achieved by removing the ionizer head 21 and the network unit 23 from the multiplier housing 22 and turning the multiplier housing through After this the heads 21 and 23 are replaced. When changing the polarity the apparatus need not be switched off, since the mains voltage is cut off by an instantaneous switch in the network unit 23 when the latter is detached.

Although the invention is illustrated and described with reference to a plurality of preferred embodiments thereof, it is to be expressly understood that it is in no way limited to the disclosure of such a plurality of preferred embodiments, but is capable of numerous modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In an aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electric supply mains, is adapted to operate with a high voltage produced by a voltage multiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode, the improvement which comprises a set of ionization electrodes made of a metal strip wherein the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end of the metal strip is in a saw tooth formation, the thickness of the metal strip being 0.04 to 0.05 mm, the ratio between the height of the saw teeth and the height of the continuous strip beneath the teeth being about 3:1, and the aperture angle of the teeth at the tooth base being at most 20, the deflecting electrode surrounding and being spaced at uniform distance from the set of ionization electrodes.

2. In an aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electric supply mains, is adapted to operate with a high voltage produced by a voltage multiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode, the improvement which comprises a set of ionization electrodes made of a metal strip wherein the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end of the metal strip is in a saw tooth formation, the set of ionization electrodes being'fixed to the outside of the inner of two rings fixed concentrically to an electrically insulating disc, the deflecting electrode being mounted on the outside of the outer ring', and the insulating disc and the electrodes being surrounded with a housing made of insulating material in the roof of which there is an opening into which is inserted a disc made of insulating material, the housing and disc being antistatic, the opening in the roof of the housing being cut with an edge sloping towards the center of the housing while the rim of the disc is cut with an edge sloping in the opposite direction to the edge of the housing roof so that a gap is formed between the two edges, the set of ionization electrodes being arranged in this gap.

3. In an aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electric supply mains, is adapted to operate with a high voltage produced by a voltage multiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode, the improvement which comprises a set of ionization electrodes made of a metal strip wherein the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end of the metal strip is in a saw tooth formation, an ionizer head, a voltage multiplier housing attached thereto, and a network unit connected to the voltage multiplier housing, the ionizer ionizer head being rectangular and having a rectangular chamber therein, the walls of the chamber being clad on the inside with a metal foil forming the deflecting electrode in such a way that the metal foil is curved at the corners and the radius of each of the opposite corners is greater than a quarter of the distance of separation between such corners. 

1. In an aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electric supply mains, is adapted to operate with a high voltage produced by a voltage muLtiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode, the improvement which comprises a set of ionization electrodes made of a metal strip wherein the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end of the metal strip is in a saw tooth formation, the thickness of the metal strip being 0.04 to 0.05 mm, the ratio between the height of the saw teeth and the height of the continuous strip beneath the teeth being about 3:1, and the aperture angle of the teeth at the tooth base being at most 20*, the deflecting electrode surrounding and being spaced at uniform distance from the set of ionization electrodes.
 1. In an aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electric supply mains, is adapted to operate with a high voltage produced by a voltage muLtiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode, the improvement which comprises a set of ionization electrodes made of a metal strip wherein the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end of the metal strip is in a saw tooth formation, the thickness of the metal strip being 0.04 to 0.05 mm, the ratio between the height of the saw teeth and the height of the continuous strip beneath the teeth being about 3:1, and the aperture angle of the teeth at the tooth base being at most 20*, the deflecting electrode surrounding and being spaced at uniform distance from the set of ionization electrodes.
 2. In an aeroionizer which can be run from a battery or electric supply mains, is adapted to operate with a high voltage produced by a voltage multiplier, and has a set of ionization electrodes and a deflecting electrode, the improvement which comprises a set of ionization electrodes made of a metal strip wherein the lower part of the metal strip forms a continuous strip while the upper, free-standing end of the metal strip is in a saw tooth formation, the set of ionization electrodes being fixed to the outside of the inner of two rings fixed concentrically to an electrically insulating disc, the deflecting electrode being mounted on the outside of the outer ring, and the insulating disc and the electrodes being surrounded with a housing made of insulating material in the roof of which there is an opening into which is inserted a disc made of insulating material, the housing and disc being antistatic, the opening in the roof of the housing being cut with an edge sloping towards the center of the housing while the rim of the disc is cut with an edge sloping in the opposite direction to the edge of the housing roof so that a gap is formed between the two edges, the set of ionization electrodes being arranged in this gap. 